AUD/USD stays confined in narrow band near 0.74 handle

• The AUD/USD pair trades in a 20-pip range on Monday.
• US Dollar Index stays in the red near mid-94s.
• Copper struggles to add to its recent gains.

The AUD/USD pair is having a difficult time making a firm move in either direction on Monday amid a lack of significant catalysts. As of writing, the pair was trading at 0.7397 and was virtually unchanged on the day.

There were no macroeconomic data releases from Australia during the Asian trading hours and investors are now waiting for the US data to find a potential catalyst. Pending home sales, which is expected to contract by 6% on a yearly basis in June, will be featured in the NA session ahead of Dallas Fed’s Manufacturing Business Index. The US Dollar Index, meanwhile, is moving sideways near the 94.50 mark and is recording small losses for the day.

On the other hand, copper futures are struggling to rise above 2.8 on Monday and don’t allow the commodity-sensitive aussie  to gather strength against its rivals. Wednesday’s FOMC event is likely to be the next significant event that could force the pair out of its recent horizontal trading channel.

Technical outlook

The RSI indicator on the daily chart is staying near the 50 mark, confirming the near-term neutral outlook for the pair. On the upside, resistances could be seen at 0.7410 (20-DMA), 0.7450 (50-DMA) and 0.7500 (psychological level). Supports, on the other hand, align at 0.7370 (Jul. 26 low), 0.7310 (Jul. 2 low) and 0.7255 (May 13, 2016, low).